Erika Neal: Remembering Alice Windom
We help each other, we make each other's lives better. And she lived that out in her life as a social worker, and she lived that out in her life as a scholar and an educator." - Erika Neal about the impact and responsibilities that Alice Windom and the Black community had and continue to be.
Erika Neal is a social activist, and a graduate student getting her Doctorate degree in Education at Walden University. She was born in St. Louis Missouri and graduated from the St. Louis public school system, and got her bachelors from SLU, and got her masters from Websters University. Growing up she was reminded and taught about her African heritage and that education and knowledge was power. From her time in primary school she learned first hand what racism was, and from these experiences she learned how important it was to stand up to injustice. Through her years in college she was a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha, the first all black sorority in America. "The first and the finest!" - Erika Neal
She met Alice Windom through AKA and became sorority sisters, and have been involved with several organizations, protests, and forms of nonprofits over the years. Erika has talked in depth about her relationship with Alice but especially the kind of inspiration, confidence, and wisdom that she has passed on to her and everyone else that surrounded Alice.
Alpha Kappa Alpha breast pin. From the Griot Museum of Black History, Alice Windom collection.
Alpha Kappa members at a get-together in the 1980s. From the Griot Museum of Black History, Alice Windom collection.
Alpha Kappa Alpha members protesting the apartheid system in South Africa. From the Griot Museum of Black History, Alice Windom collection.
Picture of a child protesting the board of education with AKA. From the Griot Museum of Black History, Alice Windom collection.
Alice Windoms involvement in her sorority of Alpha Kappa Alpha has affected the lives of so many people including Erika Neal. Their commitment to speaking out racial injustice and educating the public of their knowledge is something that all organizations that fight institutional racism should aspire to be. They promoted voting rights and protested out on the front lines such as the Board of Education and Apratheid South Africa.
Maya Angelou and Malcom X. Photographer: Alice Windom. From the Griot Museum of Black History, Alice Windom collection.
One of the most amazing things about Alice and what she has done is that she was involved with some of the most influential leaders and individuals with the Civil Rights movement. On her travels to Ghana she worked with Malcom X and Maya Angelou. And according to Erika, Alice was extremely humble about her travels and work and has never bragged about it. Erika also expressed that many of the pictures that were taken in Ghana were in fact credited to Alice Windom but was not fully credited officially. "...Maya Angelou did not take this picture. Alice Windom did." - Erika Neal
Quotes about Alice & Alpha Kappa Alpha
White Power Black Revolt magazine
"And that is that lack of understanding among some black people is a - is a fallout from racism, from America's racism. It's convinced black people, so many black people that there state is non-humans is what they should be. And so, so many of us accept it and so many of us don't. But we still have to, we have to continue that fight and understand that it is a fight. And it is not a comfortable fight. It's not a comfortable conversation." - Erika Neal
Alice Windom's NAACP membership card from the late 1970s. From the Griot Museum of Black History, Alice Windom collection.
She had so much poise about herself, she was so confident in herself she didn't need you to make up anything about her. You know, sometimes people can create um create these visions of people. Alice was so confident in who she was, she didn't need you to do that for her.
This is a flyer from one of the groups that Alice Windom was a part of that protests a ball in St. Louis allegedly supported by white supremacists such as the Ku Klux Klan. From the Griot Museum of Black History, Alice Windom collection.
"I-we-our chapter was kind of known to be the kind of protesting chapter if you would. So when there were when there was political activities going on, I would that we would pass out, we go door knocking, passing out information, standing our corners, passing out information, get out the vote. Doing voter registration, voter education, we also did some arts programming. We were great art, great promoters and supporters of the arts." - Erika Neal talking about what AKA and what Alice has done in social justice work.
One of many books that Alice Windom owns and exemplifies what her interests are.
"She would not, she would not tolerate anything in her name that was not accurate and that was not true. And she probably would say, “Don't make it too flowery or you know, don't just-just tell it.” - Erika Neal
"Her thirst for knowledge and scholarship, her dedication to excellence. Those were the things that I got from her that that mean more to me than anything. She was a model of a warrior for black people. That I'm so thankful that I had the opportunity to sip from her cup. And learn from her." - Erika Neal